Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

The Witch and the Widows

By BetterInTexas

Chapter 41:

The widows and T’Challa gathered in Shuri’s lab, waiting to see what the princess had made for them.

“I need a volunteer.” Shuri told the gathered woman.

Madison placed a hand on Ava’s back and shoved her to the front, nearly knocking her down.

“Ava volunteers.” Madison said.

Yelena rolled her eyes. “I’ve got this.”

She stepped up and Shuri handed her a black long sleeve shirt that covered her neck to the bottom of her throat. Yelena took her shirt off and T’Challa turned quickly.

“A little warning, please!” he said.

The widows chuckled while Yelena ignored him.

“I’m wearing a sports bra.” she said.

“And the pants are no doubt next.” T’Challa grumbled. “I believe I will stay facing the wall. Please let me know when it is appropriate to look.”

Yelena shook her head and placed the tight black material over her body. It felt like spandex but sturdier, still flexible but also had a slight rigidity to it. There were small shoulder pads and elbow pads, much like her suit now. Here was also a small hard case backpack attached. Shuri placed two electric batons in the slots. Yelena’s old suit had this so she supposed the upgrade was in the fabric.

“Pants.” Shuri told her, handing her the garment.

“I knew it.” T’Challa mumbled.

Yelena worked the tight fabric over herself and it felt the same as the shirt. The pants had holsters on each hip, the middle of the thigh and the calves.

Shuri handed her a belt and Yelena studied it for a moment. It had pockets for knives, space for extra clips, and electronic disks that could be used to short out electrical systems. The buckle was a dull deep blood red Widow hourglass symbol.

“Place it over where your pants and shirt meet.” Shuri ordered.

Yelena did so and was taken back as the belt seemed to melt into both fabrics and fit her perfectly.

“Perfect.” Shuri said. “Boots next.”

Yelena took the boots, the had knife slots on the side added in. She slipped the surprisingly light shoes on and the top of the boots seemed to seal with her pants the same way her belt sealed her shirt and pants together.

Then she was given gloves. The gloves did not seal into her long sleeve shirt. Shuri handed her widow bracelets. They were smaller, closer to the skin but longer was well by about an inch.

“The new bracelets shoot double the bites, for double the distance. I also improved the grappling hook with a thin vibranium weave. The tip is much smaller and the bard is magnetic as well as very sharp. It will punch through any solid object and give you an unshakeable grip. The distance is one hundred feet and it is a one-time use. I’ll send you reloads as well but unless you can do it in the field quickly, make the first one count. Put them on Yelena.”

Yelena did so and felt the gloves almost merge with her sleeve.

“Why does the fabric do this? The belt, the boots and the bracelets make it feel as if it a one piece body suit.”

“Because the fabric at those points is laced with nanobots that do bring them together into a one piece suit and protects your body from the outside environment. The suit is temperature controlled inside. There is a sliding switch on the bottom of your bracelet. You can set the temperature to regular body temp, and it will cool in the jungle or desert and heat in the winter. It can sustain your body heat at forty below zero. Less than that and I recommend adding a coat to your ensemble. The fabric is also vibranium weaved, making it bullet proof. It has very little padding though, mostly in the chest, so if you get shot, it is going to hurt.”

Yelena was impressed. “Very nice. Thank you, Princess.”

“Shuri. I’ve gotten hammered with the majority of you. That isn’t it though. Press the top and bottom of your hourglass belt buckle.”

Yelena did as told and her face was covered in material, hard polymer and goggles. She gasped at the suddenness and tried to pull it off.

“Get it off, get it off, get it off!” she shouted, pulling at the helmet.

It retracted when a smirking Shuri pushed the two buttons on her hourglass buckle.

“You couldn’t have warned her?!” T’Challa asked his little sister.

She smirked in response. “Sorry. I forgot. Yelena, please try it again. All you have to do is press the top and bottom of your buckle in that order to retract the helmet.

Yelena took a deep breath and did as told.

The helmet was in place again. Her vision was clear.

“Have your hair up in buns when you do this ladies.” Shuri told them. “Yelena if you will reach just behind the holster on your right hip you will find a small button. You have to press it five times. It’s a failsafe to make sure it doesn’t accidentally go off. Once you do, you will have infrared vision. Go to the left side and press it five times and you have night vision. The night vision automatically turns off if a bright light is present.”

Yelena played with it a few times and smiled under her mask. Despite the mask covering her face much like the mask and helmet that T’Challa wore, she could breathe easily.

“This is amazing.” Yelena said, touching the top of her head and forehead feeling the hard casing and the fabric over her face. “How is this possible?”

“Nanotechnology. Seventy six million bots changing matter and creating complex machinery like the communicator in your ear that will allow you to speak to the other widows and your head of communications. Its dialed into a specific frequency I will give you that cannot be cut into. Are you ready to see the cool stuff?”

Natasha whistled. “Tony has been talking about this for years and still hasn’t gotten far, much less to this level.”

“I’m offering basic science courses at our Los Angeles Outreach Center.” Shuri offered. “Tell him he is welcome. There is no charge for the course.” Shuri told Natasha.

“Now the cool part. Hologram, jungle environment.” She continued.

The lab was surrounded by a scene straight from a jungle, trees, vines and tall grass.

What was very difficult to see was Yelena. Her suit had changed and now blended in perfectly.

Gasps were heard around the room. Even Nat was shocked and she had spent years with Tony.

“It changes with the largest amount of scenery. Its base will always be black but if it detects a large jungle or woodland environment it will change to fit the surroundings. I call it my chameleon tech. Just make sure you can see each other. Only one more trick to show you.

“Jump please”

Yelena did so and heard nothing when she hit the ground.

“Sound absorbing tech. Absorbs and quietly disperse loud noise such as footsteps. I know you are all very sneaky. With these suits, you may as well be ghosts. Not really ghosts. I want you all back alive, no matter how angry my mother was when I came back to the palace with most of you. Now, who wants to play in our special gymnasium? None of you have seen our obstacle course. We kept track of all times. It would be very embarrassing if a Red Widow took top spot.”

As they walked out, Shuri called to Wanda and Antonia.

“Very impressive. Thank you, Princess.” Wanda told her.

“Please call me Shuri, Wanda. I understand from my brother you have a habit of changing clothes in midair when you go into superhero mode but I made a suit for you as well. You are not bulletproof. The girls told me you were shot during their liberation. You took a bullet for them.”

Wanda shrugged. “In fairness, I tried to block the bullets with my power. I missed one. It was my fault.”

“You jumped in front of a bullet to protect your friend and girls you had never met before.” Shuri said, having heard the story, not allowing her to downplay it. She had heard many stories of Wanda Maximoff at the bar. “Please consider wearing my suit on missions. Stay safe, alright?”

Wanda nodded and walked out.

Shuri was left alone with Antonia.

Shuri walked to a wall and a compartment slid open. Taskmaster’s armor emerged on a mannequin.

“The same fabric, chameleon tech, sound suppressor and body temp regulator. I didn’t change much. Yours was already quite advanced. I did change your helmet.”

“My helmet?” Antonia asked, concerned. She was used to her HUD display and had no issues with it.

“Not the HUD.” Shuri told her, almost reading her thoughts. “I have made the interface between what your helmet reads directly into the chip at the base of your brain. In other words, you will not have to sit in a chair and watch video then attached to a cable. What you see through your helmet can be directly uploaded into your mind in real time.”

Antonia grinned. “That will make life much easier.”

Shuri nodded, pleased she was happy because she was about to tell her some news she may not want to hear.

“One year. The skills you have learned will always be stored in your muscle memory. So long as you continue to train, your skills will stay sharp. However there is a risk of overload. The brain wasn’t meant to have a chip planted onto the base with a port exposed from the back of the neck. You need to take it out. I believe you have another year at most before it must be removed. I scanned it to improve your HUD display and upload capabilities. The metal of the chip can only hold for so long before the body succeeds in breaking it down. Once that happens you are facing serious repercussions.”

“Brain damage.” Antonia said. “I always suspected it would not last forever.”

Shuri nodded. “It is a testament to the metal’s strength that it has held this long. The erosion is imminent though. A year at most is all it could possibly last. I believe we should take it out sooner. If it were up to me, I would ask you to stay so I can take it out now. I know you will want to be a part of this mission. My suggestion is to download what you want, finish this mission and let me remove it. You will need to stay here for a few weeks in recovery.”

“I will be normal.” Antonia said. “My sisters need my gifts.”

“And they will have them as long as you keep training but they won’t have you if you don’t let me take that thing out of your head. Brain damage could be the least of your concerns. It will be fatal eventually.”

Antonia nodded. “I understand.” She took a deep breath. “When Bosco is dead I ask you to perform the surgery. What are the risks of the surgery?”

Shuri sighed. “There are always risks when dealing with the brain. I can only say that I have the best medical team in the world and I am very good at what I do. The surgery will be long but I have full faith that when it is done you will recover and be your old self.”

Antonia wasn’t sure what her old self was but she knew she wanted as much time with Lerato as possible.

“It will be done. Thank you, Shuri.”

Shuri waved off her thanks.

“One of your sisters is Wakandan. You are family now… I would do it anyway. What he did to you… what he did to all of you… it was evil I had never imagined could exist. Suit up and have fun with the others. I’ll be there shortly. I am in the top twenty on that course. I think today I will move up.”

The next evening, Everett found Wanda in her room. She let him in and took her place on the floor with her legs crossed.

“Good evening.”

“Good evening” Everett said, pulling out a desk chair. “My legs ache too much to sit like that. We haven’t had time to talk. How are you?”

“I’m good, how are you?”

Everett nodded. “All things considered, not bad. Alive because of you. I tend to owe my life to people often. You seem different. I thought maybe it was seeing you physically but I have noticed you are… sadder.”

Wanda laughed softly. “Have you been psychoanalyzing me?”

“Just watching a dear friend and worrying. Everything okay?”

Wanda shrugged. “I don’t do well with change. We opened our home to Captain America and the Black Widow. Now there are others… something is happening between me and Bucky and… it’s just complicated. Things were much simpler before.”

“Before?”

“Yes, before.” Wanda said, not elaborating. “I am also ready to return home in the morning. Wakanda is amazing but I miss my bed and we have a long weekend ahead of us. Girls’ trip.”

Everett understood.

“Want a drink?” she asked.

“Do you have soda?”

“As a mixer? No, but it can be arranged.” she told him.

Wanda closed her eyes and a mixed drink of bourbon and soda was in his hand. In her hand was a bottle of vodka.

“Let’s keep this between ourselves. The girls decided we would all give up drinking. I have decided I will take up breath mints on a more regular basis.”

Everett raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you always about the girls and following the rules you all set and agree too?”

Wanda nodded. “When the girls have to hold back the power to destroy the universe when they are agitated, they can talk to me. Lately, I become very agitated daily. I have always had anxiety problems. It’s this or marijuana and I don’t like to smoke. Alcohol has always done the trick for me.”

“Anxiety huh? Shaking, nervousness, things like that?” he asked.

Wanda nodded. “Yes, but a drink or two makes it go away. Anxiety was part of living on the streets if you wanted to stay alive. Even when you relaxed, you could never let your guard down. Danger was always lurking.”

“So alcohol helped with the anxiety enough to dull you without making you sloppy. You must be able to handle a lot to get that level of control.” Ross told her.

Wanda stared at him for a moment. “Are you trying to infer something, Ross?”

Everett raised his hands in peace. “Just wondering. We have had different lives and I am interested I yours.”

“Destroying things is fun as well and helps me relax. HYDRA bases, A.I.M. bases, Vision. Unleashing my real power is such a rush but now I am holding myself back. I need a new target. This Bosco character will not be worth my full power. So instead of relaxing by unleashing what is inside me, I relax by drinking. Yelena and I do have secrets from each other.”

Everett grinned. “No you don’t.”

“We do now. I believe the nighttime exercise is about to begin. I have to prepare for my part. You can stay but I need absolute quite.”

Everett stood and patted her on the shoulder. “I’m going to Shuri’s lab to watch the show. Have fun. Take it easy on them.”

Out in the wild lands of Wakanda, Okoye readied her troops. The job was simple. Find and take out the widows. Rogers, Barnes and T’Challa were not a part of this exercise. The idea was to give the widows an idea of what to expect from enemies that knew the terrain like the back of their hand. Arrows and spears were blunted but would defintely hurt and Okoye planned to send them all to Disney Land limping and bruised.

“They are assassins, not soldiers. They have depleted numbers as well.” She told her women. “I was told they put an impromptu age limit on the girls allowed into combat. Twelve of their widows are out, including Zarola. The main threat is Romanoff.”

“What of Belova and Taskmaster?” Xoliswa asked.

“Belova is dangerous but Romanoff is better. As far as Taskmaster, I have yet to see her fight. She wears advanced armor and supposedly can mimic our fighting style. I have my doubts of the stories I have been told.” Okoye said.

“And Maximoff?”

Okoye shook her head. “She stayed at the palace. I do not believe she will be conducting any outdoor warfare by her sisters’ side but I heard she will participate perhaps as a distraction. I’m not sure what that means. She is not allowed to use her red energy blasts on us. If we see her flying, spear her… with a blunt spear of course. Their goal is to take the flag. A typical game. Our goal will be to take them out before they get close. Set traps, use the land, and kill swiftly and silently. This is our home and we will not be beaten. They are arrogant and it will be their undoing.”

The horn in the distance sounded, signaling the beginning of the game. The sun had set. The waxing crescent moon gave dim light that was all but snuffed out by the tall trees. The animals that spoke at night were quieted as several teams began to move towards each other. It seemed they were interested in the clash to come too.

Xoliswa had been hunting with her party when she saw a flash of red hiding by a tree. She peered through the tall grass and to her shock saw a red jacket and long hair.

Maximoff had entered the field. She was quiet but couldn’t even hide herself behind a tree.

Xoliswa motioned for her team of five to circle Maximoff, giving her a wide birth. They knew what she could do but it had been agreed she would not hurt anyone if she showed herself.

She remained unmoving behind the tree.

Xoliswa, and her four team members circled and rushed her. Xoliswa tried to grab her shoulder to take her to the ground but Maximoff turned before she could.

What had been Wanda Maximoff was a teenage girl who was dead. Her eyes were gone, her skin paled and cracked and her mouth a pit of darkness.

“Help me.” the girl whispered, her voice hoarse and falling towards the woman, reaching out for her face.

She and the others stepped back in shock, all of them holding back screams at the living dead girl. Then Maximoff laughed, a chilling sound that sent dread into their bodies. They backed away quickly and the shuffling of their feet and curses gave their positions away. Several pellets struck them from all directions.

They were dead. Xoliswa dropped her spear on the ground as did the others. They had to stay where they were and could not report in as agreed by the rules.

Maximoff had told Okoye her role would be distraction. Xoliswa’s team had just learned what sort of distraction and were still terrified of the monstrous girl grinning at them.

Then she disappeared.

The widows moved silently passed them, not bothering to gloat. It was obvious what their plan was. It didn’t matter if they knew their land the best. They couldn’t hide their minds from Wanda. She told the widows where to go, took the attention of the Dora Milaje while the widows surrounded them and when they gave their positions away, the widows attacked. Unlike them who relied on spears, the widows could attack from a distance more accurately with their rifles.

“That was cheating.” one of them complained.

“That was us underestimating how effective Maximoff can be without being in the field.” another said.

“I’m going to have nightmares about that brat. I thought the Scarlet Witch was just some ridiculous superhero name like Iron Man or Captain America. She is truly a witch. Those empty eye sockets and the skin and that laugh… my heart is still racing. My heart never races. I never want to see her again.”

Xoliswa agreed. She would be having nightmares about Maximoff too. When T’Challa called Wanda a witch, she should have paid attention.

Farther away, Okoye led her group, setting stun mines in the ground and positioning her soldiers with spears spread out, ready to take down the enemy. With Shuri’s tech the Widows were much more difficult to find but she knew these lands. She would be able to feel them. She could feel shifts in the wind and feel the vibrations on the ground.

“What is that you are burying? It looks dangerous.” a heavily accented voice asked her.

She looked over her shoulder with spear in hand and thrust it at Maximoff. It went through her.

Maximoff’s face transformed, her visage turning demonic, her eyes turning black and black veins coursing over her face. She didn’t look human. Maximoff roared, the fangs in her mouth dripping blood. Okoye scrambled back with wide eyes, not bothering to stand.

Maximoff was gone.

In a tall tree on a large branch, a soldier prepared to launch a spear the second she saw a blade of grass move in a direction it shouldn’t have.

“You are all going to die. Run now while you have a chance.” A seductive voice whispered in her ear.

The soldier shuffled back on the limb but saw no one.

“Call for help.” The voice told her as if it were in her ear.

The soldier shook her head. “I can’t.” she whispered. She turned away from the voice and saw Maximoff’s demonic face staring at her inches away. She screamed and dropped her spear. A rubber bullet hit her in the chest.

Maximoff was gone.

Okoye heard the scream from the tree and ducked down.

“She is manipulating our minds. She is not physically here. Protect your minds!” she hissed.

“How do we protect our minds?” one of them asked.

Okoye had no idea.

While pondering the dilemma, her concentration was taken away from her surroundings. The spooked Dora Milaje never heard the widows until it was too late. Some were shot, but most were taken down by force. Romanoff, Taskmaster and Yelena held her down and cuffed her.

“She makes good distraction, yes?” Yelena asked Okoye,

“She is a monster!”

Romanoff got off of her. “We agreed she wouldn’t fly in and blast everyone. She hasn’t. She is a part of the team though and you were told she would be used as a distraction.”

“Without her you would never have taken us by surprise.” Okoye argued.

Yelena chuckled. “Without her? She is a part of our team. We even left some of our best fighters behind. I thought you wouldn’t become afraid. She scared you a bit, yes? You know the land and we have the most power. Let’s go, Red Widows. We have more distance to go. Wanda, where are next set of minds?”

Okoye watched Yelena pause as she took a moment to listen to Maximoff on her com, then moved her widows away.

Ava’s team branched to the right and Ingrid took off to the left, in search of high ground. According to Antonia’s HUD they were close to the flag.

Ava’s team caused a distraction, firing into the open tree line with fire suppressing shots. The Dora Milaje moved closer in groups, invisible packs shuffling unseen through the darkness. Ava’s shots into the trees, led them the direction they wanted.

Using infrared, Ingrid began picking them off. She had taken down six before a spear barely missed her and she fell from the tree. She used her grappling line to prevent her from hitting the ground and breaking only a few bones if she were lucky.

A spear welding soldier jumped from the tall grass. Ingrid unclipped herself and rolled over before the spear hit her. She pulled both batons, clamped them together and countered the attack.

The soldier’s skills with the spear were too great. She was disarmed and then a strike was headed for her chest before a monstrous Wanda popped in front of her and roared. The soldier hesitated and jumped back it was all Ingrid needed to take the spear and strike her down, taking her out of the contest.

The soldier said nothing, standing still, staring at the spot Wanda had been and trembling.

“What… what was that?”

“That was my sister, the Scarlet Witch. I have an aunt who is a witch too. They do things like that sometime. She really is nice, once you get to know her.”

“She looked like a monster.”

“You should see her in the mornings after a hard night of drinking. I need to get back to my squad. This has been fun.”

Ingrid patted the still shaken woman on the shoulder and moved off.

At the flag, the guard was shot by Yelena and the prize taken easily, setting off a horn that announced the Red Widows had won.

When they all gathered back at the palace, Okoye and her fellow Dora Milaje were fuming.

“The point of this exercise was to give your team an idea of what facing a superior foe in an unfamiliar environment was like!” Okoye told them.

Yelena shook her head. “Our goal was to face a team familiar with the land. We had advantages and we used them. We have firearms and are very good with them. We strike from a distance. We also have Wanda.”

“Yes. You brought her into this. What did you learn? Is she going to be in the field with you in Rwanda?”

Yelena shrugged. “The same as she was here. She can cover much more area and do much more without being present.”

Okoye narrowed her eyes. “You wouldn’t have won without her.”

Yelena laughed. “You see, we don’t have to. The same could be said about you if you lost your best fighters. Wanda took it easy on you. She won’t go easy on our enemies.”

“She is right.” Natasha said. “Take it from someone who has been on her bad side. She sent all the Avengers on the run. She screwed with our heads and made our worst fears come to life. She placed us in living nightmares. All she did here was feel the presence of your minds and astral projected around the land. She was screwing with you. When we go to Rwanda, she will not only be reading minds ahead of our parties but taking over minds, forcing soldiers to kill themselves and their allies, having child soldiers walk out of the jungle and fall asleep and to some, she will dig in their minds, rip every thought from their heads and place them in a loop of their own fears coming to life. She won’t even need to be on the ground or physically present. We aren’t going into this battle without utilizing our weapons.”

Okoye frowned. “So we were test subjects for you to practice your combat strategy utilizing Maximoff in the jungle.”

Yelena nodded. “It was successful.”

“I almost had my back broken.” Ingrid grumbled.

“Don’t cry, Wanda would have healed you.” Yelena told her.

“You don’t cry. You are supposedly the best sniper. Why do you never take the nest?” Ingrid mumbled.

“You want me to take the nest? I’ll take the nest. I won’t fall out of tree either. I am sorry. I am glad you did not break neck and die. Other than Ingrid being clumsy, it was good night. We need to keep our snipers moving. You barely dodged a spear. A bullet would have struck you and defintely knocked you off the tree.”

Wanda walked inside with Bucky and Cap. Bucky’s new Vibranium arm was covered by a black tactical jacket and glove. Steve also wore a black outfit Shuri had made for him.

“Don’t worry, Ingrid. I was ready to catch you. I let loose a few more barriers and had enough to give you a soft landing even from my distance.” Wanda said.

The Dora Milaje quieted, taking in the red head with trepidation and backing away from her unconsciously. Wanda saw the fear on their faces they tried to hide and smirked.

“That was fun, right?” she asked them. “I’ve talked to my teacher. We want to go quietly at first but if they pick up any warnings of encroachment we have some fun spells ready for them. If you thought you were scared, you have no idea what we have cooked up. Some might have heart attacks before you get to kill them. I heard one of you ask how to protect your mind from me. You really can’t. I was only whispering in your ear to screw with you. If I had taken control of your mind you would have done whatever I wanted. I only do that to real enemies though.

“Girls, we should get to bed right? Check each other for ticks and other bugs catching rides with you, then off to sleep. We have an early flight. When we reach our base, we will only be there for a few hours before we go to Disneyland.”

The widows retreated to their bedrooms except for Nat, Yelena, Bucky, Steve and Wanda. Bucky moved to talk to Wanda but Yelena stepped in front of him.

“Not tonight bionic man. I need a night with my sister.”

Wanda was surprised. “You’ve spent almost every night with your parents or Kate lately.”

“And tonight I want to spend it with you. We haven’t really spoken since the meeting other than to talk about the drill. We always speak. Why no more?”

Wanda laughed. “Yelena, you have a lot of people to spend time with. There are only so many hours in the day. Kate needs your love. You deserve this time with your parents and you are still getting to know Natasha. The girls need you for leadership in the field. You have a lot going on.”

Yelena was quiet for a moment. “Wanda, you are not less important than those you talk of.”

“Yes, I am Yelena. They need you. I can take care of myself. You need to be strong for them. Go sleep in your parents’ room. I’ll check with the girls and see who needs me with them.”

Wanda walked out, wanting to be away but Yelena caught up and grabbed her in the hall.

“Don’t do this, Wanda.”

“Don’t what?”

“Don’t isolate yourself. Don’t pull away from me.”

“I’m not!”

“Yes you are. Nothing matters if I don’t have you. Don’t turn away from me. You tend to pull away from everyone when you are sad. Tell me why you are sad.”

Wanda pulled her in for a big hug and kissed her on the forehead. “I am fine, Yelena. I won’t pull away from you. Relax, okay.”

Yelena nodded. She could smell the breath mint but she also noted that none of nervous ticks were present. That only occurred after she drank.

Yelena wasn’t going to ask her about it. This wasn’t the time. Yelena had been desiring a drink herself and Wanda had been drinking much longer and more than she had over their lives. She knew it would take more than a group decision to affect Wanda and maybe some of the others.

“I hang out in your room for a while?” she asked.

Wanda shrugged and made her way to the luxury apartment assigned to her. She changed with a snap of her fingers into pajamas and Yelena squeezed herself out of the suit and grabbed a set of shorts and t shirt from Wanda. They both had a seat on the bed.

“So, what was that out there?” the blonde asked.

Wanda raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t play. I recognize those looks on their faces. I have seen them on our enemies. You didn’t distract them. You terrorized them. Why?”

“You care what I did to them? I didn’t harm them or control them. I didn’t incinerate them. I distracted them and felt for the presence of minds. I did what you told me to do. I assumed how I did it was left in my hands.”

Yelena nodded. “They will have nightmares tonight. Now truth. Why did you scare them so badly?”

Wanda grinned. “Okoye challenged us. She ordered us to talk Zarola into moving in with her. She told us who should be in our meeting. She challenged everything about us. I don’t like being challenged. She also made Zarola very uncomfortable. Zarola told me last night. Okoye’s insistence that she live in Wakanda shook her. You know the girls don’t like being told what to do by others. Okoye won’t be telling any of us what to do again. I just taught them a lesson.”

Yelena nodded. “Harsh, but understandable. Remember, Wakandans are friends though. These have been trying days. I feel exhausted. I understand Disney Land is quite the workout. We have tonight and tomorrow night to relax. Kate has been working on wearing a veil to disguise herself. She is very excited. What about you?”

Wanda nodded. “I am excited to see Staci happy and hope that it doesn’t backfire on us. I should have done a hex of Disney Land first so we can measure how she responds afterward. I think she will be okay. I’ll be staying with her while we spread out over the park. She has slept near me so many nights I can feel her emotions without trying. It will be good for all the girls to have fun. I still want us to go to an island and get away from it all. Maybe after we finish Bosco.”

Yelena appeared relaxed but she was analyzing every word Wanda spoke.

“You want the girls to have fun. What about you? You have never been to a park like this either. You have never been on what do you call… water ride? Or rollercoaster?”

Wanda blew it off. “I can fly. What could a rollercoaster possibly do to me?”

“You fly standing up as much as possible and you never fly upside down or take sharp dives unless you are lowering yourself straight down at a slow speed and in complete control. That is when you do the superhero landing thing with the head down and the hair falling around your face, the wiggly woo lit up in your hands and such.”

“I get it.” Wanda told her, not admitting that Yelena was right. She didn’t fear heights but the idea of being strapped into a machine that would shake and jolt her, then send her upside down and in loops at high speed was not appealing. “No, I have no desire to go to Disney Land myself. Maybe when I was a child I dreamed about it. That dream ended with my childhood. Now I only want to see our girls and you happy. What about you? Are you excited?”

Yelena frowned. “Yes, I am. I wish you were too.”

Wanda punched her in the shoulder lightly. “Don’t mind me. I’m just homesick. I’ll be excited when I get there. Supposedly it will take two days to see and do everything. I am glad we are staying at the Disney Hotel. I have a feeling our legs will be very sore.”

Yelena nodded. “You don’t mind if Mama and Papa come?”

Wanda eyes widened. “Of course not! If I were you three I would never want to leave each other’s side. I know this Rwanda mission will be difficult on them. Take the time to enjoy each other. Maybe Nat can hang with you and they can get to know your big sister more.”

Yelena sighed. “You are my big sister too.”

Wanda lay on her sighed and fluffed her pillow. “Yelena, I am fine. I’m not sure why you are convinced I’m not.”

Yelena shrugged and lay down beside her, fluffing her own pillow. “I worry about my ride or die. You hide your feelings too much.”

Wanda snorted. “I know Yelena Belova did not just comment on me hiding feelings.”

“I do not hide my feelings. That is because of you. I don’t hide my feelings from anyone. Ask Natasha’s face. When I am angry everyone knows I am angry. When I am happy, everyone knows. When I am in love I make sure to tell her constantly. You hide your feelings. Happy, sad, angry, it is hard to tell sometimes with you.”

Wanda leaned over and kissed Yelena on the forehead. “I’m happy. Let’s go to sleep. I want to be up early and gone from this place.”

“You don’t like Wakanda?”

Wanda hummed. “It is a beautiful land but as my arch enemy Dorothy once said, there is no place like home.”

Washington D.C.

To say Everett Ross was annoyed would be an understatement. He had woken up that morning, given a ride on a Wakandan jet to J.F.K. International in New York. He wanted nothing more than to go home and enjoy a long weekend sleeping at his own apartment and only waking long enough to eat and drink a beer.

He had hoped to spend some more time with Wanda but she had seemed distracted all week. He knew from the cameras Okoye’s teams had worn what Wanda had done. She had been vicious. He knew that she had been in a mood and he knew that she could now conjure drinks in her hand whenever she wanted. Something was wrong with her but he couldn’t put his finger on it. Wanda in her best moods was sarcastic and hid behind layers of steel walls she had built around herself. In her worst moods, she became even more withdrawn and sarcastic.

Something was going on with her and Barnes. He never got to ask her about it in more detail, but he hoped it wasn’t serious. Barnes had decades of trauma in his head after being released from mind control. Surprisingly he hoped it was just something physical in the best case scenario. Romantic feelings between two people who don’t do feelings well like Barnes and Maximoff, were a bad mix. He knew about bad relationships.

His worst one had summoned him into his office. He supposed he should have been grateful that she didn’t order him to drive to Langley to her office.

Now after being in the back of a taxi stuck in traffic for two hours, he finally made it into the United Nations Headquarters with his carry on and rolling luggage in hand. It was after hours so only the security gave him strange looks when he walked inside. He left his bags with them and went to his office.

Of course she was behind his desk in his chair. Valentina Allegra Fontaine, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency and his boss. She also happened to be his ex-wife.

“Everett, you are looking well. It has been months since we have last seen each other. You have done quite well for yourself. Congratulations on the A.I.M. takedown and the Osborn arrest. It’s a shame you couldn’t be there when Carter took him into custody.”

Everett nodded, used to her sarcasm and insincerity. “Nice to see you too, Val.” he lied. “How are the politics in Washington? Things are still on shaky ground there, huh?”

Val rolled her eyes and kicked her feet up on his desk. “I am having hell keeping my job. It seems everyone important wants you to have it. The darling of the Intelligence world, best buddies with the Sokovian Witch and the only government agent the infamous Red Widows will work with.”

Ross shrugged. “They seemed to like Sharon Carter.”

Val nodded. “How was Wakanda?”

“Interesting as always. King T’Challa remains sincere in his goal to help the world advance technology and share resources.”

Val nodded. “Share, meaning he decides who has the resources and how much of a resource one will get.”

Ross sighed, having an idea of where this was going. The United States, like every other country in the world, wanted Vibranium. He was the only American who had a relationship with the king. The President was expected to resign in the next month, after the scrutiny of his relationship with Thaddeus Ross became too much. Nothing had been proven but the accusations had not died down and he was being pressured by his own party to resign. The repercussions were still being felt around the world and the U.S. had an image problem even before those crimes were brought to light.

“That is usually what happens when a country has a resource the world wants.”

Val laughed. “I’m going to ask you a few questions and I am not asking as your friend, or the woman who used to wake up to you every morning, but as your boss. Your trip was sudden. Why?”

“The King wanted to speak to me about matters related to the United Nations and my position as…”

“Cut the bullshit, Everett. Were the Red Widows there? We know T’Challa fought by their side in Germany and then accompanied them to Siberia to capture Zemo. We know you are friends with both sides and made a sudden trip. I’m getting very tired of having to guess what is going on while one of my agents is in the know. Were the Red Widows in Wakanda this week?”

Everett shrugged. “I was there to conduct business with T’Challa and discuss Wakanda having a representative on the United Nations Counterterrorism Task Force. There were many people in the palace. I didn’t make it my business to speak to each one.”

Val smiled and drummed her fingers on the chairs armrests. She had played this game millions of times and Everett Ross was too honest to successfully lie to someone like her.

“Everett, I want to know if Wakanda has formed a partnership with the Red Widows. I want to know if the Red Widows have access to Vibranium and technology from Wakanda. Tell me, or I will have you arrested for treason.”

In the past, Everett would have blanched at the threat. Fury allowed him more leeway at SHIELD, but he had yet to learn to play the game in the C.I.A. He was still finding his feet and being under the thumb of General Ross kept him in line where she wanted him.

Now he simply smiled back at her.

“Arrest me. Charge me with treason for not answering a question. That may get you a room next to General Ross when it is proven you falsely accused an officer of a serious crime with no proof. I can resign if you prefer. The Secretary General of the United Nations wants me to work with the U.N. full time under their banner. I have certain confidential informants, as I am allowed to in my position. It is my right to protect these informants. You can throw me in prison if you want but she has been in my head. She can find me anywhere now. She will come for me and I will be out. All you will succeed in doing is making her angry. Ask Maria Rambeau how that worked out for her. You don’t want to put yourself in her crosshairs, Val. She doesn’t care about politics or positions. Maximoff will end you if you cross her and no one could stop her. I am not saying this as an agent but the guy who used to wake up next to you in the mornings. Don’t antagonize her. She is the one person you can’t manipulate, threaten or stop. Positions are meaningless to her. You’ve read the reports of what she has done to enemies. I don’t want to see you turned into a drooling, catatonic mess stuck inside a nightmare in your own head.”

Val kept a smile planted on her face but fumed inside.

“You realize the entire world does not all think they are heroes.” she pointed out.

“You realize they don’t care.” he countered.

Val sighed. “I’ve read everything about the girls at least a dozen times. Rhodes reports of the Red Room liberation were very enlightening. Mind controlled girls. This Chloe Spencer was one. What happened? Did the HYDRA agents run out of the drug once Dreykov lost his head? That’s what they do, right? That is why they hit these human trafficking rings. They are shutting down old pipelines to the Red Room and finding widows. Those who are still under control they free and then… add them to their ranks? Rhodes believed there could be close to two hundred of them in the world. Their numbers are over thirty now. Why you, Everett? What makes you so special that Maximoff would work with you?”

“I asked nicely.” Everett told her. “Why am I here, Val? I’m tired. We both know you aren’t going to fire me or arrest me. You know I’m not going to give up information on the Red Widows. You know if you make a move against them, Wanda Maximoff will do something very bad to you. We both know what she has done and is capable of still doing.”

“I am asking nicely too. I want them to work with me.” Val told him.

Despite being tired, Everett laughed genuinely for the first time.

“You have lost it, haven’t you? Nobody works with you. People work for you and they work for no one, especially a C.I.A. director. You can’t be serious. You aren’t that dumb.”

“I assure you I am very serious and we both know I am anything but dumb. I want your thoughts on Yelena Belova. She is the key, not Maximoff. I want reports on all the girls. I want to know how old they are and just how psychotic they really are. Do it or you can work for the United Nations.”

Everett nodded.

“Then consider this my resignation.”

He stood up and walked to the door.

“Wait.”

He smirked them turned around and smiled. “Yes… Val?”

“We both know you have more power in the C.I.A. than you would working for the Secretary General. You can’t help them there. You would have no real power working for the Secretary General.”

“And you know I won’t betray them. You know that if you try to arrest me, Maximoff would break me out and kill you even if I asked her not to. You want to know about them? Look at their actions. I think they speak for themselves. They won’t work for the United States or anyone beside themselves. They don’t even work with me now that A.I.M. is gone.”

Val chuckled and stood, making her way to him. “You are such a bad liar. I bet you couldn’t wait to introduce your old pals to your new pals and make them one big happy family. These games will catch up to you one day, Everett. One day you will slip up and find yourself on your own.”

Everett laughed. “At least I will be able to sleep soundly at night.”

“I assure you I sleep soundly.”

He nodded. “And that says more about you than any psychological profile ever could. Have a nice trip back to Langley. I’ll be flying to Vienna Tuesday. The International Centre rebuild is coming along nicely but the Counterterrorism Center needs work. It was nice to see you again. Give my love to the dogs and that very strange hairless cat you have… wait that was Dr. Evil. I get you two confused sometimes.”

Val watched him walk out and waited until he was in the elevator before she screamed. She was a woman who was used to getting her way. Everything was in flux now. The Red Widows hadn’t just taken down a war criminal who was the secretary of state. They had taken down the executive branch. Agencies were scrambling for positions in a free for all for power, the country was losing any leverage it had over the world.

How could the United States use the threat of force against a country if all that country needed to do was reach out to Wanda Maximoff? She was the ultimate nuclear deterrent. She was also the ultimate weapon and Rambeau had given up too easily. She had gone about it all wrong. There must be a key to controlling them. Everyone had a weakness. Everyone.

She could tell by Ross’ non answers and pathetic denials, that the Red Widows were now best friends with Wakanda or at least T’Challa which was the same thing. Captain America, Bucky Barnes and Natasha Romanoff were part of the most famous vigilantes in the world. The rest of the Avengers were scattered. Rhodes and Stark no longer had a relationship. Stark had no plans to rebuild the Avengers. Stark was providing airships and software to the Department of Damage Control but nothing else beside what the contract specified.

Val needed leverage and could only see one way to accomplish this. She needed to find a mind controlled Black Widow before the Red Widows did and free her to show Belova she was an ally or hold hostage unless Belova worked with her.

That wouldn’t work. Maximoff would rip the information from her head and leave her that drooling mess Everett has described. She had to save one of them. She had to beat them to one of these girls. So where could she find one?

Spencer had been used as a hit woman or hit girl in her case. Most of the widows were used as one, old and young. Romanoff had been an assassin who seduced and killed targets, first at the Red Room’s orders and then likely at Fury’s orders. She needed to find a young female assassin working for a shady agency and hire her. That should be easy. She was the C.I.A. Director. Finding independent killers for hire was a requirement of the job.

Save a Black Widow and make new friends. Val was determined to find a way to be friends with them. Once that happened, she could learn their weakness and how to control them. That was how she would consolidate and ensure her power. No one would stop her, including her ex-husband. Perhaps the assassin may kill him before Val rescued her.

Disney Land Hotel, Paris

The Red Widows and friends were gathered outside the hotel about to walk inside the park. Steve and Bucky were also present as well as Agatha. Bucky, like many of the others had a photostatic veil over his face and wore a jacket that seemed out of place on the warm day. Steve wore a false beard and cap pulled down low.

Half the widows were disguised as well, including Natasha and Wanda. Kate was wearing one for the first time ever and having difficulty judging by how often she kept scratching her face.

“Does everyone have their e ticket?” Yelena asked.

Everyone held up their phones.

“We all have hard polymer icepicks in our bras?” she asked.

A chorus of yes.

“Look at everybody. Remember what we all look like. Stay together in groups of five. This is no different than a mission. Watch each other’s backs. Keep your phones on you. If we split up all over the place, remember to meet for lunch at 1300 hours at Captain Jack’s. I have reserved us tables near waterfront so we can watch the passenger boats go by. Dinner time is 1900 hours at Inventions in Hotel. If you miss getting a photo with a Disney star they should all be there. We will also be back tomorrow so do not rush through every theme land. We have an extra day if we need to hit a few more lands. Tonight the fireworks go off at 2200 in front of Cinderella Castle. You all have maps on phone app right?”

A chorus of yes was heard again, this time more impatient.

“What did we agree most important rule is today?” Yelena asked.

“No killing anyone.” The widows responded.

Wanda shook her head, glad they were away from the general population of the front of the hotel.

The group walked through the extensive security checks and eventually made their way into the park.

Staci held Wanda’s hand the entire time. Instead of a bundle of energy she was quiet. Wanda could feel she was calm though. She was happy but was in an awe induced silence.

“It’s beautiful.” Staci said. “Don’t you think so, Wanda?”

Wanda nodded. “Yes, I do. I think it looks even more beautiful with you in it.”

Despite some breaking off most stayed around Staci, enjoying her reactions. Within the hour all the girls had split into groups and began exploring. Yelena, Bucky, Kate and her parents stayed with Wanda and Staci. Nat and Steve began speaking to some of the other girls and split up, trying to get to know each one on a personal level. Steve asked Rowan if he could join her group and she begrudgingly agreed, though she wasn’t crazy about it. Agatha had dressed like a housewife and herded many of the girls to the rollercoasters.

The day was all Wanda could have hoped it would be and she eventually found herself having a good time rather than just enjoying watching others have good times. The girls had always been young but they were like children in a way. She hadn’t seen Naomi laugh like she was in so long. Yasmine couldn’t stop smiling. Madison and Amanda, Mika and Ava, even Antha shouted with joy while she rode a rollercoaster.

After begging off riding the Big Thunder for the third time with Staci and talking Bucky into riding with her, Wanda took a break and had a seat by the exit. She laughed a bit at her pale legs in shorts outside for the first time in… she couldn’t remember if she had ever worn shorts outside. She had forgone her regular clothes in favor of a much more casual shirt to go with her slightly older face that matched her fake identity.

Agatha had a seat beside her.

“The girls are having a blast. Maybe we should have done this sooner. I thought I even caught you genuinely smiling a couple times. Don’t tell me my brooding teenage witch is going soft.”

Wanda smirked. “The girls are having so much fun. I knew Staci would but they all seem to be enjoying themselves.”

Agatha nodded. “It’s the first trip any of them have ever taken where their only objective is to have fun. I doubt Rogers and Barnes have done anything solely for fun since before the war began. Natasha doesn’t strike me as someone who goes on vacations for enjoyment. As cold as this is to say I think Kate Bishop had fun beaten out of her. She has forgotten how to have fun and not think about that man every day. She is remembering what life was like before the park and realizing what it could be with Yelena.”

Wanda winced at Agatha’s typically brutal summation especially towards Kate but she was right.

“Eleanor wanted to talk to you last night.”

Wanda shrugged. “I was tired and we had to leave early to get to the hotel. It cost extra for us to check in so early. It still blows my mind the amount of money we have to spend. Who says crime doesn’t pay? Taking from criminals has certainly done well for us.”

“Stop dancing around the subject. She loves you, kid. Are you really in a position to turn away people that love you and want to take care of you? You take care of everyone else. You even take bullets for these girls but who takes care of you? Eleanor wants to.”

Wanda winced, knowing it was true. “Eleanor needs to take care of her traumatized daughter.”

“Her traumatized daughter is in better shape than you. How do you do it? How do you stay quiet at night and not emit the fear your nightmares give you towards others? How do you make them feel so good while you sleep?”

Wanda snorted. “Who says I sleep? I stay awake as long as I can. Sometimes I stay up all night with my eyes closed. Then, when I pass out, I am too tired to dream. I take in the fears of others and I swallow them and I hold them tight in my dreams. Just like we absorbed Kate’s pain when we healed her, I can absorb the fears they emit. I wish I could do it for the entire house but I can only handle those near me.”

“How many hours of sleep do you get a night? Natural sleep, not passed out drunk sleep.”

Wanda shrugged. “I wear dark makeup for a reason. What does this matter, Agatha? I have slept with one eye open for a very long time. Maybe if Bucky would give me what I want instead of this 1940s wooing he wants to do, I could sleep better.”

Agatha nodded. “Eleanor loves you kid. She is worried about you. I know it sucks. I know how hard it is. You look around and see these kids and wonder how many of them are going to find their own families. You want to be happy for Yelena but seeing her with her parents is just another reminder that yours are never coming back. Seeing Natasha with her is a reminder that Pietro is never coming back. You see the baby of the family slowly drawing closer to Natasha, an interloper that competes for Yelena’s love and it makes you angry. You see Mr. Perfect and want to hit him in his perfect jaw despite knowing that he is one of the nicest, most noble, decent men in the world. You see this Barnes guy who has had just as screwed up a life as you have. But you developed feelings accidentally and it hit you at once. You don’t want feeling. You want to push it away and hide it behind sex but he isn’t playing ball. He wants to act on these feelings. He wants something real and you don’t know what real is. Ironic for someone who can alter reality.”

Wanda felt a tear fall down her cheek as she listened to Agatha lay Wanda’s soul bare.

“You poor child. You hide it so well but you couldn’t stop drinking if you tried, could you? Its all you have ever known. Fight, don’t sleep, watch your back and your brother’s back, then when you become so tired you drink enough to check out of reality, not caring for the night if you live or die. I know you, Wanda. I know you so well kid. I know you are surrounded by love but it sucks because it comes with a lot of crap. I know you love Eleanor but the idea of having another mother figure scares the hell out of you.”

Wanda wiped her face, taking care not to disturb the veil.

“I have you.”

“I’m the fun and crazy aunt. I love you and these girls more than I have ever loved in my life but I’m not the mother figure you need. You do need one. You need someone to take care of you for once. When Staci gets off, we are meeting up with team four at Blanche-Neige et les Nains. The line is long and I want you to persuade some guests to try other rides with your mind tricks. We need to hit that ride together, Wanda.”

Wanda raised an eyebrow and laughed. “Why do we need to be together?”

“Because Snow White and those seven bastard dwarves may have beat one evil queen but she won’t stand a chance against two of us. Its time we put that bitch and her pets in her place.”

“As long as we don’t traumatize any kids. Promise?”

Agatha shook her head. “I never make promises I can’t keep. Lets get our girls and go. This is my first time at a theme park. Its pretty cool, right? What if we attack Cinderella castle tonight? The park owners would have to tell the public its part of the act to save face.”

Wanda shook her head. “Let’s take care of Snow White and see where it goes from there, okay?”

“You’ll talk to Eleanor when we get back?”

Wanda nodded. “Yeah, I’ll talk to her.”